A communication network may include a large number of network elements. For example, an optical circuit may include Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET) multiplexers, digital cross-connects, and/or wavelength selectable switches (WSSs). A technician may interact with a network element by sending a command to the network element. For example, a technician may send a command requesting a status associated with a network element or may send a command to change a configuration of the network element. The commands may require multiple arguments and a technician may spend a significant amount of time generating network element commands.